I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9123 

To encourage increased trade and investment between the United States 

and the countries in the Western Balkans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 24, 2024 

Mr. KEATING (for himself, Mr. LAMBORN, and Mr. GOLDMAN of New York) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To encourage increased trade and investment between the 

United States and the countries in the Western Balkans, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 4. Definitions. 

Sec. 5. Codification of sanctions relating to the Western Balkans. 

Sec. 6. Democratic and economic development and prosperity initiatives. 

Sec. 7. Promoting cross-cultural and educational engagement. 

Sec. 8. Peace Corps in the Western Balkans. 

Sec. 9. Young Balkan Leaders Initiative. 

Sec. 10. Supporting cybersecurity and cyber resilience in the Western Balkans. 

Sec. 11. Sense of Congress regarding an interim agreement. 

Sec. 12. Reports on Russian and Chinese malign influence operations and campaigns in the Western Balkans. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The Western Balkans countries (the Repub4 lic of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic 

5 of Croatia, the Republic of Kosovo, Montenegro, the 

6 Republic of North Macedonia and the Republic of 

7 Serbia) form a pluralistic, multi-ethnic region in the 

8 heart of Europe that is critical to the peace, sta9 bility, and prosperity of that continent. 

10 (2) Continued peace, stability, and prosperity in 

11 the Western Balkans is directly tied to the opportu12 nities for democratic and economic advancement 

13 available to the citizens and residents of those seven 

14 countries. 

15 (3) It is in the mutual interest of the United 

16 States and the seven countries of the Western Bal17 kans to promote stable and sustainable economic 

18 growth and development in the region. 

19 (4) The reforms and integration with the Euro20 pean Union pursued by countries in the Western 


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1 Balkans have led to significant democratic and eco2 nomic progress in the region. 

3 (5) Despite economic progress, rates of poverty 

4 and unemployment in the Western Balkans remain 

5 higher than in neighboring European Union coun6 tries. 

7 (6) Out-migration, particularly of youth, is af8 fecting demographics in each Western Balkans coun9 try, resulting in population decline in all seven coun10 tries. 

11 (7) Implementing critical economic and govern12 ance reforms could help enable investment and em13 ployment opportunities in the Western Balkans, es14 pecially for youth, and can provide powerful tools for 

15 economic development and for encouraging broader 

16 participation in a political process that increases 

17 trade and prosperity for all. 

18 (8) Existing regional economic efforts could 

19 have the potential to improve the economic condi20 tions in the Western Balkans, while promoting inclu21 sion and transparency. 

22 (9) The Department of Commerce, through its 

23 Foreign Commercial Service, plays an important role 

24 in promoting and facilitating opportunities for 

25 United States trade and investment. 


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1 (10) Corruption, including among key political 

2 leaders, continues to plague the Western Balkans 

3 and represents one of the greatest impediments to 

4 further economic and political development in the re5 gion. 

6 (11) Disinformation campaigns targeting the 

7 Western Balkans undermine the credibility of its 

8 democratic institutions, including the integrity of its 

9 elections. 

10 (12) Vulnerability to cyberattacks or attacks on 

11 information and communication technology infra12 structure increases risks to the functioning of gov13 ernment and the delivery of public services. 

14 (13) United States Cyber Command, the De15 partment of State, and other Federal agencies play 

16 a critical role in defending the national security in17 terests of the United States, including by deploying 

18 cyber hunt forward teams at the request of partner 

19 nations to reinforce their cyber defenses. 

20 (14) Securing domestic and international cyber 

21 networks and ICT infrastructure is a national secu22 rity priority for the United States, which is exempli23 fied by offices and programs across the Federal Gov24 ernment that support cybersecurity. 


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1 (15) Corruption and disinformation proliferate 

2 in political environments marked by autocratic con3 trol. 

4 (16) Dependence on Russian sources of fossil 

5 fuels and natural gas for the countries of the West6 ern Balkans ties their economies and politics to the 

7 Russian Federation and inhibits their aspirations for 

8 European integration. 

9 (17) Reducing the reliance of the Western Bal10 kans on Russian natural gas supplies and fossil fuels 

11 is in the national interest of the United States. 

12 (18) The growing influence of China in the 

13 Western Balkans could also have a deleterious im14 pact on strategic competition, democracy, and eco15 nomic integration with Europe. 

16 (19) In March 2022, the United States 

17 launched the European Democratic Resilience Initia18 tive to bolster democratic resilience, advance anti19 corruption efforts, and defend human rights in 

20 Ukraine and its neighbors in response to Russia’s 

21 war of aggression. 

22 (20) The parliamentary and local elections held 

23 in Serbia on December 17, 2023, and their imme24 diate aftermath are cause for deep concern about the 

25 state of Serbia’s democracy, including due to the 


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1 final report of the Organization for Security and Co2 operation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institu3 tions and Human Rights, which— 

4 (A) found ‘‘unjust conditions’’ for the elec5 tion; 

6 (B) found ‘‘numerous procedural defi7 ciencies, including inconsistent application of 

8 safeguards during voting and counting, fre9 quent instances of overcrowding, breaches in se10 crecy of the vote, and numerous instances of 

11 group voting’’; and 

12 (C) asserted that ‘‘voting must be re13 peated’’ in certain polling stations. 

14 (21) The Organization for Security and Co-op15 eration in Europe also noted that Serbian officials 

16 accused primarily peaceful protestors, opposition 

17 parties, and civil society of ‘‘attempting to desta18 bilize the government’’, a concerning allegation that 

19 threatens the safety of important elements of Ser20 bian society. 

21 (22) Democratic countries whose values are in 

22 alignment with the United States make for stronger 

23 and more durable partnerships. 


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1 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is a sense of Congress that the United States 

3 should— 

4 (1) encourage increased trade and investment 

5 between the United States and allies and partners in 

6 the Western Balkans; 

7 (2) expand United States assistance to regional 

8 integration efforts in the Western Balkans; 

9 (3) strengthen and expand regional economic 

10 integration in the Western Balkans, especially enter11 prises owned by and employing women and youth; 

12 (4) work with allies and partners committed to 

13 improving the rule of law, energy resource diver14 sification, democratic and economic reform, and the 

15 reduction of poverty in the Western Balkans; 

16 (5) increase United States trade and investment 

17 with the Western Balkans, particularly in ways that 

18 support countries’ efforts— 

19 (A) to decrease dependence on Russian en20 ergy sources and fossil fuels; 

21 (B) to increase energy diversification, effi22 ciency, and conservation; and 

23 (C) to facilitate the transition to cleaner 

24 and more reliable sources of energy, including 

25 renewables, as appropriate; 


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1 (6) continue to assist in the development, with2 in the Western Balkans, of— 

3 (A) strong civil societies; 

4 (B) public-private partnerships; 

5 (C) independent media; 

6 (D) transparent, accountable, citizen-re7 sponsive governance, including equal represen8 tation for women and youth; 

9 (E) political stability; and 

10 (F) modern, free-market based economies; 

11 (7) support the expeditious accession of those 

12 Western Balkans countries that are not already 

13 members to the European Union and to the North 

14 Atlantic Treaty Organization (referred to in this sec15 tion as ‘‘NATO’’) for countries that desire and are 

16 eligible for such membership; 

17 (8) support— 

18 (A) maintaining the full European Union 

19 Force (EUFOR) mandate in Bosnia and 

20 Herzegovina as being in the national security 

21 interests of the United States; 

22 (B) encouraging NATO and the European 

23 Union to review their mission mandates and 

24 posture in Bosnia and Herzegovina to ensure 

25 they are playing a proactive role in establishing 


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1 a safe and secure environment, particularly in 

2 the realm of defense; 

3 (C) working within NATO to encourage 

4 contingency planning for an international mili5 tary force to maintain a safe and secure envi6 ronment in Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially 

7 if Russia blocks reauthorization of the mission 

8 in the United Nations; and 

9 (D) a strengthened NATO headquarters in 

10 Sarajevo; 

11 (9) continue to support the European Union 

12 membership aspirations of Albania, Bosnia and 

13 Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Monte14 negro, and Serbia by supporting meeting the bench15 marks required for their accession; 

16 (10) continue to support the overarching mis17 sion of the Berlin Process and locally-driven initia18 tives that are inclusive of all Western Balkans coun19 tries and remains aligned with the objectives and 

20 standards laid out by the European Union as re21 quirements for accession to the European Union; 

22 (11) continue to support the cultural heritage, 

23 and recognize the languages, of the Western Bal24 kans; 


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1 (12) coordinate closely with the European 

2 Union, the United Kingdom, and other allies and 

3 partners on sanctions designations in Western Bal4 kans countries and work to align efforts as much as 

5 possible to demonstrate a clear commitment to up6 holding democratic values; 

7 (13) expand bilateral security cooperation with 

8 non-NATO member Western Balkans countries, par9 ticularly efforts focused on regional integration and 

10 cooperation, including through the Adriatic Charter, 

11 which was launched at Tirana on May 2, 2003; 

12 (14) increase efforts to combat Russian malign 

13 influence campaigns and any other destabilizing or 

14 disruptive activities targeting the Western Balkans 

15 through engagement with government institutions, 

16 political stakeholders, journalists, civil society orga17 nizations, and industry leaders; 

18 (15) develop a series of cyber resilience stand19 ards, consistent with the Enhanced Cyber Defence 

20 Policy and Readiness Action Plan endorsed at the 

21 2014 Wales Summit of the North Atlantic Treaty 

22 Organization to expand cooperation with partners 

23 and allies, including in the Western Balkans, on 

24 cyber security and ICT infrastructure; 


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1 (16) articulate clearly and unambiguously the 

2 United States commitment to supporting democratic 

3 values and respect for international law as the sole 

4 path forward for the countries of the Western Bal5 kans; and 

6 (17) prioritize partnerships and programming 

7 with Western Balkan countries that demonstrate 

8 commitment toward strengthening their democracies 

9 and show respect for human rights. 

10 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

12 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT13 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com14 mittees’’ means— 

15 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

16 the Senate; 

17 (B) the Committee on Appropriations of 

18 the Senate; 

19 (C) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

20 the House of Representatives; and 

21 (D) the Committee on Appropriations of 

22 the House of Representatives. 

23 (2) ICT.—The term ‘‘ICT’’ means information 

24 and communication technology. 


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1 (3) WESTERN BALKANS.—The term ‘‘Western 

2 Balkans’’ means the region comprised of the fol3 lowing countries: 

4 (A) The Republic of Albania. 

5 (B) Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

6 (C) The Republic of Croatia. 

7 (D) The Republic of Kosovo. 

8 (E) Montenegro. 

9 (F) The Republic of North Macedonia. 

10 (G) The Republic of Serbia. 

11 (4) WESTERN BALKANS COUNTRY.—The term 

12 ‘‘Western Balkans country’’ means any country list13 ed in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of paragraph 

14 (3). 

15 SEC. 5. CODIFICATION OF SANCTIONS RELATING TO THE 

16 WESTERN BALKANS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each person listed or designated 

18 for the imposition of sanctions under an executive order 

19 described in subsection (c) as of the date of the enactment 

20 of this Act shall remain so designated, except as provided 

21 in subsections (d) and (e). 

22 (b) CONTINUATION OF SANCTIONS AUTHORITIES.— 

23 Each authority to impose sanctions provided for under an 

24 executive order described in subsection (c) shall remain 

25 in effect. 


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1 (c) EXECUTIVE ORDERS SPECIFIED.—The executive 

2 orders specified in this subsection are— 

3 (1) Executive Order 13219, as amended by Ex4 ecutive Order 13304 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating 

5 to blocking property of persons who threaten inter6 national stabilization efforts in the Western Bal7 kans); and 

8 (2) Executive Order 14033 (50 U.S.C. 1701 

9 note; relating to blocking property and suspending 

10 entry into the United States of certain persons con11 tributing to the destabilizing situation in the West12 ern Balkans), as in effect on such date of enact13 ment. 

14 (d) TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.—The President 

15 may terminate the application of a sanction described in 

16 subsection (a) with respect to a person if the President 

17 certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that 

18 such person— 

19 (1) has not engaged in the activity that was the 

20 basis for such sanctions, if applicable, during the 

21 two-year period immediately preceding such termi22 nation date; or 

23 (2) otherwise no longer meets the criteria that 

24 was the basis for such sanctions. 

25 (e) WAIVER.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President may waive 

2 the application of sanctions under this section for re3 newable periods not to exceed 180 days if the Presi4 dent— 

5 (A) determines that such a waiver is in the 

6 national security interests of the United States; 

7 and 

8 (B) not less than 15 days before the grant9 ing of the waiver, submits to the appropriate 

10 congressional committees a notice of and jus11 tification for the waiver. 

12 (2) FORM.—The waiver described in paragraph 

13 (1) may be transmitted in classified form. 

14 (f) EXCEPTIONS.— 

15 (1) HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE.—Sanctions 

16 under this Act shall not apply to— 

17 (A) the conduct or facilitation of a trans18 action for the provision of agricultural commod19 ities, food, medicine, medical devices, humani20 tarian assistance, or for humanitarian purposes; 

21 or 

22 (B) transactions that are necessary for, or 

23 related to, the activities described in subpara24 graph (A). 


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1 (2) COMPLIANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL OBLI2 GATIONS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES.— 

3 Sanctions under this Act shall not apply with respect 

4 to an alien if admitting or paroling such alien is nec5 essary— 

6 (A) to comply with United States obliga7 tions under— 

8 (i) the Agreement between the United 

9 Nations and the United States of America 

10 regarding the Headquarters of the United 

11 Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 

12 1947, and entered into force November 21, 

13 1947; 

14 (ii) the Convention on Consular Rela15 tions, done at Vienna April 24, 1963, and 

16 entered into force March 19, 1967; or 

17 (iii) any other international agree18 ment; or 

19 (B) to carry out or assist law enforcement 

20 activity in the United States. 

21 (3) EXCEPTION FOR INTELLIGENCE ACTIVI22 TIES.—Sanctions under this Act shall not apply to— 

23 (A) any activity subject to the reporting 

24 requirements under title V of the National Se25 curity Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.); or 


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1 (B) any authorized intelligence activities of 

2 the United States. 

3 (4) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTATION OF

4 GOODS.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The requirement to 

6 block and prohibit all transactions in all prop7 erty and interests in property under this Act 

8 shall not include the authority or a requirement 

9 to impose sanctions on the importation of 

10 goods. 

11 (B) DEFINED TERM.—In this paragraph, 

12 the term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or 

13 manmade substance, material, supply or manu14 factured product, including inspection and test 

15 equipment, and excluding technical data. 

16 (g) RULEMAKING.—The President is authorized to 

17 promulgate such rules and regulations as may be nec18 essary to carry out the provisions of this section (which 

19 may include regulatory exceptions), including under sec20 tion 205 of the International Emergency Economic Pow21 ers Act (50 U.S.C. 1704)). 

22 (h) SUNSET.—This section shall cease to have force 

23 or effect beginning on the date that is 8 years after the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 6. DEMOCRATIC AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND 

2 PROSPERITY INITIATIVES. 

3 (a) ANTI-CORRUPTION INITIATIVE.—The Secretary 

4 of State, through ongoing and new programs, shall develop 

5 an initiative that— 

6 (1) seeks to expand technical assistance in each 

7 Western Balkans country, taking into account local 

8 conditions and contingent on the agreement of the 

9 host country government to develop new national 

10 anti-corruption strategies; 

11 (2) seeks to share best practices with, and pro12 vide training to, civilian law enforcement agencies 

13 and judicial institutions, and other relevant adminis14 trative bodies, of the Western Balkans countries, to 

15 improve the efficiency, transparency, and account16 ability of such agencies and institutions; 

17 (3) strengthens existing national anti-corruption 

18 strategies— 

19 (A) to combat political corruption, particu20 larly in the judiciary, independent election over21 sight bodies, and public procurement processes; 

22 and 

23 (B) to strengthen regulatory and legislative 

24 oversight of critical governance areas, such as 

25 freedom of information and public procurement, 


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1 including by strengthening cyber defenses and 

2 ICT infrastructure networks; 

3 (4) includes the Western Balkans countries in 

4 the European Democratic Resilience Initiative of the 

5 Department of State, or any equivalent successor 

6 initiative, and considers the Western Balkans as a 

7 recipient of anti-corruption funding for such initia8 tive; and 

9 (5) seeks to promote the important role of an 

10 independent media in countering corruption through 

11 engagements with governments of Western Balkan 

12 countries and providing training opportunities for 

13 journalists on investigative reporting. 

14 (b) PRIORITIZING CYBER RESILIENCE, REGIONAL

15 TRADE, AND ECONOMIC COMPETITIVENESS.— 

16 (1) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

17 Congress that— 

18 (A) promoting stronger economic, civic, 

19 and political relationships among Western Bal20 kans countries will enable countries to better 

21 utilize existing resources and maximize their 

22 economic security and democratic resilience by 

23 reinforcing cyber defenses and increasing trade 

24 in goods and services among other countries in 

25 the region; and 


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1 (B) United States investments in and as2 sistance toward creating a more integrated re3 gion ensures political stability and security for 

4 the region. 

5 (2) 5-YEAR STRATEGY FOR ECONOMIC DEVEL6 OPMENT AND DEMOCRATIC RESILIENCE IN WESTERN

7 BALKANS.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

8 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 

9 and the Administrator of the United States Agency 

10 for International Development, in coordination with 

11 the heads of other relevant Federal departments and 

12 agencies, shall submit to the appropriate congres13 sional committees a regional economic development 

14 and democratic resilience strategy for the Western 

15 Balkans that complements the efforts of the Euro16 pean Union, European nations, and other multilat17 eral financing institutions— 

18 (A) to consider the full set of tools and re19 sources available from the relevant agencies; 

20 (B) to include efforts to ensure coordina21 tion with multilateral and bilateral partners, 

22 such as the European Union, the World Bank, 

23 and other relevant assistance frameworks; 

24 (C) to include an initial public assessment 

25 of— 


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1 (i) economic opportunities for which 

2 United States businesses, or those of other 

3 like-minded partner countries, would be 

4 competitive; 

5 (ii) legal, economic, governance, 

6 infrastructural, or other barriers limiting 

7 United States trade and investment in the 

8 Western Balkans; 

9 (iii) the effectiveness of all existing re10 gional cooperation initiatives; and 

11 (iv) ways to increase United States 

12 trade and investment within the Western 

13 Balkans; 

14 (D) to develop human and institutional ca15 pacity and infrastructure across multiple sec16 tors of economies, including clean energy, en17 ergy efficiency, agriculture, small and medium18 sized enterprise development, health, and cyber19 security; 

20 (E) to assist with the development and im21 plementation of regional and international trade 

22 agreements; 

23 (F) to support women-owned enterprises; 

24 (G) to promote government and civil soci25 ety policies and programs that combat corrupVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 Aug 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9123.IH H9123

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1 tion and encourage transparency (including by 

2 supporting independent media by promoting the 

3 safety and security of journalists), free and fair 

4 competition, sound governance, judicial reform, 

5 environmental stewardship, and business envi6 ronments conducive to sustainable and inclusive 

7 economic growth; and 

8 (H) to include a public diplomacy strategy 

9 that describes the actions that will be taken by 

10 relevant agencies to increase support for the 

11 United States relationship by citizens of West12 ern Balkans countries. 

13 (3) BRIEFING.—Not later than 90 days after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

15 of State shall provide a briefing to the appropriate 

16 congressional committees that describes the progress 

17 made towards developing the strategy required 

18 under paragraph (2). 

19 (c) REGIONAL TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT INITIA20 TIVE.— 

21 (1) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of State 

22 and the Administrator of the United States Agency 

23 for International Development, in coordination with 

24 the heads of other relevant Federal departments and 

25 agencies, may coordinate a regional trade and develVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 Aug 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9123.IH H9123

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1 opment initiative for the region comprised of each 

2 Western Balkans country and any European Union 

3 member country that shares a border with a West4 ern Balkans country (referred to in this subsection 

5 as the ‘‘Western Balkans region’’) in accordance 

6 with this subsection. 

7 (2) INITIATIVE ELEMENTS.—The initiative au8 thorized under paragraph (1) shall— 

9 (A) promote private sector growth and 

10 competitiveness and increase the capacity of 

11 businesses, particularly small and medium-sized 

12 enterprises, in the Western Balkans region; 

13 (B) aim to increase intraregional exports 

14 to countries in the Balkans and European 

15 Union member states; 

16 (C) aim to increase United States exports 

17 to, and investments in, countries in the Bal18 kans; 

19 (D) support startup companies, including 

20 companies led by youth or women, in the West21 ern Balkans region by— 

22 (i) providing training in business 

23 skills and leadership; and 

24 (ii) providing opportunities to connect 

25 to sources of capital; 


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1 (E) encourage and promote inward and 

2 outward trade and investment through engage3 ment with the Western Balkans diaspora com4 munities in the United States and abroad; 

5 (F) provide assistance to the governments 

6 and civil society organizations of Western Bal7 kans countries to develop— 

8 (i) regulations to ensure fair and ef9 fective investment; and 

10 (ii) screening tools to identify and 

11 deter malign investments and other coer12 cive economic practices; 

13 (G) review existing assistance program14 ming relating to the Western Balkans across 

15 Federal agencies— 

16 (i) to eliminate duplication; and 

17 (ii) to identify areas of potential co18 ordination within the Western Balkans re19 gion; 

20 (H) identify areas where application of ad21 ditional resources could expand successful pro22 grams to 1 or more countries in the Western 

23 Balkans region by building on the existing expe24 rience and program architecture; 


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1 (I) compare existing single-country sector 

2 analyses to determine areas of focus that would 

3 benefit from a regional approach with respect to 

4 the Western Balkans region; and 

5 (J) promote intraregional trade throughout 

6 the Western Balkans region through— 

7 (i) programming, including grants, co8 operative agreements, and other forms of 

9 assistance; 

10 (ii) expanding awareness of the avail11 ability of loans and other financial instru12 ments from the United States Government; 

13 and 

14 (iii) coordinating access to existing 

15 trade instruments available through allies 

16 and partners in the Western Balkans re17 gion, including the European Union and 

18 international financial institutions. 

19 (3) SUPPORT FOR REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE

20 PROJECTS.—The initiative authorized under para21 graph (1) should facilitate and prioritize support for 

22 regional infrastructure projects, including— 

23 (A) transportation projects that build 

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1 frastructure to facilitate travel of goods and 

2 people throughout the Western Balkans region; 

3 (B) technical support and investments 

4 needed to meet United States and European 

5 Union standards for air travel, including 

6 screening and information sharing; 

7 (C) the development of telecommunications 

8 networks with trusted providers; 

9 (D) infrastructure projects that connect 

10 Western Balkans countries to each other and to 

11 countries with which they share a border; 

12 (E) the effective analysis of tenders and 

13 transparent procurement processes; 

14 (F) investment transparency programs 

15 that will help countries in the Western Balkans 

16 analyze gaps and establish institutional and 

17 regulatory reforms necessary— 

18 (i) to create an enabling environment 

19 for trade and investment; and 

20 (ii) to strengthen protections against 

21 suspect investments through public pro22 curement and privatization and through 

23 foreign direct investments; 

24 (G) sharing best practices learned from the 

25 United States and other international partners 


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1 to ensure that institutional and regulatory 

2 mechanisms for addressing these issues are fair, 

3 nonarbitrary, effective, and free from corrup4 tion; 

5 (H) projects that support regional energy 

6 security and reduce dependence on Russian en7 ergy; 

8 (I) technical assistance and generating pri9 vate investment in projects that promote 

10 connectivity and energy-sharing in the Western 

11 Balkans region; 

12 (J) technical assistance to support regional 

13 collaboration on environmental protection that 

14 includes governmental, political, civic, and busi15 ness stakeholders; and 

16 (K) technical assistance to develop financ17 ing options and help create linkages with poten18 tial financing institutions and investors. 

19 (4) REQUIREMENTS.—All programming under 

20 the initiative authorized under paragraph (1) shall— 

21 (A) be open to the participation of Albania, 

22 Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, 

23 North Macedonia, and Serbia; 

24 (B) be consistent with European Union ac25 cession requirements; 


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1 (C) be focused on retaining talent within 

2 the Western Balkans; 

3 (D) promote government policies in West4 ern Balkans countries that encourage free and 

5 fair competition, sound governance, environ6 mental protection, and business environments 

7 that are conducive to sustainable and inclusive 

8 economic growth; and 

9 (E) include a public diplomacy strategy to 

10 inform local and regional audiences in the 

11 Western Balkans region about the initiative, in12 cluding specific programs and projects. 

13 (d) UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

14 FINANCE CORPORATION.— 

15 (1) APPOINTMENTS.—Not later than 1 year 

16 after the date of the enactment of this Act, subject 

17 to the availability of appropriations, the Chief Exec18 utive Officer of the United States International De19 velopment Finance Corporation, in collaboration 

20 with the Secretary of State, should consider includ21 ing a regional office with responsibilities for the 

22 Western Balkans within the Corporation’s plans to 

23 open new regional offices. 

24 (2) JOINT REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

25 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 


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1 Chief Executive Officer of the United States Inter2 national Development Finance Corporation and the 

3 Administrator of the United States Agency for 

4 International Development shall submit a joint re5 port to the appropriate congressional committees 

6 that includes— 

7 (A) an assessment of the benefits of pro8 viding sovereign loan guarantees to countries in 

9 the Western Balkans to support infrastructure 

10 and energy diversification projects; 

11 (B) an outline of additional resources, such 

12 as tools, funding, and personnel, which may be 

13 required to offer sovereign loan guarantees in 

14 the Western Balkans; and 

15 (C) an assessment of how the United 

16 States International Development Finance Cor17 poration can deploy its insurance products in 

18 support of bonds or other instruments issued to 

19 raise capital through United States financial 

20 markets in the Western Balkans. 

21 SEC. 7. PROMOTING CROSS-CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL 

22 ENGAGEMENT. 

23 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con24 gress that— 


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1 (1) promoting partnerships between United 

2 States universities and universities in the Western 

3 Balkans, particularly universities in traditionally 

4 under-served communities, advances United States 

5 foreign policy goals and requires a whole-of-govern6 ment approach, including the utilization of public7 private partnerships; 

8 (2) such university partnerships would provide 

9 opportunities for exchanging academic ideas, tech10 nical expertise, research, and cultural understanding 

11 for the benefit of the United States; and 

12 (3) the seven countries in the Western Balkans 

13 meet the requirements under section 105(c)(4) of 

14 the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 

15 2151c(c)(4)). 

16 (b) UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS.—The President, 

17 working through the Secretary of State, is authorized to 

18 provide assistance, consistent with section 105 of the For19 eign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151c), to pro20 mote the establishment of partnerships between United 

21 States universities and universities in the Western Bal22 kans, including— 

23 (1) supporting research and analysis on foreign 

24 policy, cyber resilience, and disinformation; 


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1 (2) working with partner governments to re2 form policies, improve curricula, strengthen data 

3 systems, train teachers and students, including 

4 English language teaching, and to provide quality, 

5 inclusive learning materials; 

6 (3) encouraging knowledge exchanges to help 

7 provide individuals, particularly at-risk youth, 

8 women, people with disabilities, and other vulner9 able, marginalized, or underserved communities, 

10 with relevant education, training, and skills for 

11 meaningful employment; 

12 (4) promoting teaching and research exchanges 

13 between institutions of higher education in the West14 ern Balkans and in the United States; and 

15 (5) encouraging alliances and exchanges with 

16 like-minded institutions of education within the 

17 Western Balkans and the larger European continent. 

18 SEC. 8. PEACE CORPS IN THE WESTERN BALKANS. 

19 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con20 gress that the Peace Corps, whose mission is to promote 

21 world peace and friendship, in part by helping the people 

22 of interested countries in meeting their need for trained 

23 men and women, provides an invaluable opportunity to 

24 connect the people of the United States with the people 

25 of the Western Balkans. 


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1 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

2 of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Peace 

3 Corps should submit a report to the appropriate congres4 sional committees that includes an analysis of current op5 portunities for Peace Corps expansion in the Western Bal6 kans region. 

7 SEC. 9. YOUNG BALKAN LEADERS INITIATIVE. 

8 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con9 gress that regular people-to-people exchange programs 

10 that bring religious leaders, journalists, civil society mem11 bers, politicians, and other individuals from the Western 

12 Balkans to the United States will strengthen existing rela13 tionships and advance United States interests and shared 

14 values in the Western Balkans region. 

15 (b) BOLD LEADERSHIP PROGRAM FOR YOUNG BAL16 KANS LEADERS.— 

17 (1) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—The Department of 

18 State, through BOLD, a leadership program for 

19 young leaders in certain Western Balkans countries, 

20 plays an important role to develop young leaders in 

21 improving civic engagement and economic develop22 ment in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Mon23 tenegro. 


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1 (2) EXPANSION.—BOLD should be expanded, 

2 subject to the availability of appropriations, to the 

3 entire Western Balkans region. 

4 (c) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of State should 

5 further develop and implement BOLD, which shall here6 after be known as the ‘‘Young Balkan Leaders Initiative’’, 

7 to promote educational and professional development for 

8 young adult leaders and professionals in the Western Bal9 kans who have demonstrated a passion to contribute to 

10 the continued development of the Western Balkans region. 

11 (d) CONDUCT OF INITIATIVE.—The goals of the 

12 Young Balkan Leaders Initiative shall be— 

13 (1) to further build the capacity of young Bal14 kan leaders in the Western Balkans in the areas of 

15 business and information technology, cyber security 

16 and digitization, agriculture, civic engagement, and 

17 public administration; 

18 (2) to support young Balkan leaders by offering 

19 professional development, training, and networking 

20 opportunities, particularly in the areas of leadership, 

21 innovation, civic engagement, elections, human 

22 rights, entrepreneurship, good governance, public ad23 ministration, and journalism; 

24 (3) to support young political, parliamentary, 

25 and civic Balkan leaders in collaboration on regional 


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1 initiatives related to good governance, environmental 

2 protection, government ethics, and minority inclu3 sion; 

4 (4) to provide increased economic and technical 

5 assistance to young Balkan leaders to promote eco6 nomic growth and strengthen ties between busi7 nesses, investors, and entrepreneurs in the United 

8 States and in Western Balkans countries; 

9 (5) to tailor such assistance to advance the par10 ticular objectives of each United States mission in 

11 the Western Balkans within the framework outlined 

12 in this subsection; and 

13 (6) to secure funding for such assistance from 

14 existing funds available to each United States Mis15 sion in the Western Balkans. 

16 (e) FELLOWSHIPS.—Under the Young Balkan Lead17 ers Initiative, the Secretary of State shall award fellow18 ships to young leaders from the Western Balkans who— 

19 (1) are between 18 and 35 years of age; 

20 (2) have demonstrated strong capabilities in en21 trepreneurship, innovation, public service, and lead22 ership; 

23 (3) have had a positive impact in their commu24 nities, organizations, or institutions, including by 


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1 promoting cross-regional and multiethnic coopera2 tion; and 

3 (4) represent a cross-section of geographic, gen4 der, political, and cultural diversity. 

5 (f) PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP CEN6 TER.—Under the Young Balkan Leaders Initiative, the 

7 Secretary of State shall take advantage of existing and 

8 future public diplomacy facilities (commonly known as 

9 ‘‘American Spaces’’) to hire staff and develop program10 ming for the establishment of a flagship public engage11 ment and leadership center in the Western Balkans that 

12 seeks— 

13 (1) to counter disinformation and malign influ14 ence; 

15 (2) to promote cross-cultural engagement; 

16 (3) to provide training for young leaders from 

17 Western Balkans countries described in subsection 

18 (e); 

19 (4) to harmonize the efforts of existing venues 

20 throughout Western Balkans countries established 

21 by the Office of American Spaces; and 

22 (5) to annually bring together participants from 

23 the Young Balkans Leaders Initiative to provide 

24 platforms for regional networking. 

25 (g) BRIEFING ON CERTAIN EXCHANGE PROGRAMS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec3 retary of State shall provide a briefing to the appro4 priate congressional committees that describes the 

5 status of exchange programs involving the Western 

6 Balkans region. 

7 (2) ELEMENTS.—The briefing required under 

8 paragraph (1) shall— 

9 (A) assess the factors constraining the 

10 number and frequency of participants from 

11 Western Balkans countries in the International 

12 Visitor Leadership Program of the Department 

13 of State; 

14 (B) identify the resources that are nec15 essary to address the factors described in sub16 paragraph (A); and 

17 (C) describe a strategy for connecting 

18 alumni and participants of professional develop19 ment exchange programs of the Department of 

20 State in the Western Balkans with alumni and 

21 participants from other countries in Europe, to 

22 enhance inter-region and intra-region people-to23 people ties. 


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1 SEC. 10. SUPPORTING CYBERSECURITY AND CYBER RESIL2 IENCE IN THE WESTERN BALKANS. 

3 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con4 gress that— 

5 (1) United States support for cybersecurity, 

6 cyber resilience, and secure ICT infrastructure in 

7 Western Balkans countries will strengthen the re8 gion’s ability to defend itself from and respond to 

9 malicious cyber activity conducted by nonstate and 

10 foreign actors, including foreign governments, that 

11 seek to influence the region; 

12 (2) insecure ICT networks that are vulnerable 

13 to manipulation can increase opportunities for— 

14 (A) the compromise of cyber infrastruc15 ture, including data networks, electronic infra16 structure, and software systems; and 

17 (B) the use of online information oper18 ations by adversaries and malign actors to un19 dermine United States allies and interests; and 

20 (3) it is in the national security interest of the 

21 United States to support the cybersecurity and cyber 

22 resilience of Western Balkans countries. 

23 (b) INTERAGENCY REPORT ON CYBERSECURITY AND

24 THE DIGITAL INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT IN WESTERN

25 BALKANS COUNTRIES.—Not later than 1 year after the 

26 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, 


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1 in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, the Sec2 retary of Homeland Security, and the heads of other rel3 evant Federal agencies, shall submit a report to the appro4 priate congressional committees that contains— 

5 (1) an overview of interagency efforts to 

6 strengthen cybersecurity and cyber resilience in 

7 Western Balkans countries; 

8 (2) a review of the information environment in 

9 each Western Balkans country; 

10 (3) a review of existing United States Govern11 ment cyber and digital initiatives that— 

12 (A) counter influence operations and safe13 guard elections and democratic processes in 

14 Western Balkans countries; 

15 (B) strengthen ICT infrastructure and cy16 bersecurity capacity in the Western Balkans; 

17 (C) support democracy and internet free18 dom in Western Balkans countries; and 

19 (D) build cyber capacity of governments 

20 who are allies or partners of the United States; 

21 (4) an assessment of cyber threat information 

22 sharing between the United States and Western Bal23 kans countries; 

24 (5) an assessment of— 


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1 (A) options for the United States to better 

2 support cybersecurity and cyber resilience in 

3 Western Balkans countries through changes to 

4 current assistance authorities; and 

5 (B) the advantages or limitations, such as 

6 funding or office space, of posting cyber profes7 sionals from other Federal departments and 

8 agencies to United States diplomatic posts in 

9 Western Balkans countries and providing rel10 evant training to Foreign Service Officers; and 

11 (6) any additional support needed from the 

12 United States for the cybersecurity and cyber resil13 ience of the following NATO Allies: Albania, Monte14 negro, North Macedonia, and Croatia. 

15 SEC. 11. RELATIONS BETWEEN KOSOVO AND SERBIA. 

16 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con17 gress that— 

18 (1) the Agreement on the Path to Normaliza19 tion of Relations, which was agreed to by Kosovo 

20 and Serbia on February 27, 2023, with the facilita21 tion of the European Union, is a positive step for22 ward in advancing normalization between the two 

23 countries; 


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1 (2) Serbia and Kosovo should seek to make im2 mediate progress on the Implementation Annex to 

3 the agreement referred to in paragraph (1); 

4 (3) once sufficient progress has been made on 

5 the Implementation Annex, the United States should 

6 consider advancing initiatives to strengthen bilateral 

7 relations with both countries, which could include— 

8 (A) establishing bilateral strategic dia9 logues with Kosovo and Serbia; and 

10 (B) advancing concrete initiatives to deep11 en trade and investment with both countries; 

12 and 

13 (4) the United States should continue to sup14 port a comprehensive final agreement between 

15 Kosovo and Serbia based on mutual recognition. 

16 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 

17 United States Government that— 

18 (1) it shall not pursue any policy that advocates 

19 for land swaps, partition, or other forms of redraw20 ing borders along ethnic lines in the Western Bal21 kans as a means to arbitrate disputes between na22 tion states in the region; and 

23 (2) it should support pluralistic democracies in 

24 countries in the Western Balkans as a means to preVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 Aug 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9123.IH H9123

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1 vent a return to the ethnic strife that once charac2 terized the region. 

3 SEC. 12. REPORTS ON RUSSIAN AND CHINESE MALIGN IN4 FLUENCE OPERATIONS AND CAMPAIGNS IN 

5 THE WESTERN BALKANS. 

6 (a) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every two 

8 years thereafter, the Secretary of State, in coordination 

9 with the Secretary of Defense, the Director of National 

10 Intelligence, and the heads of other Federal departments 

11 or agencies, as appropriate, shall submit a report to the 

12 appropriate congressional committees regarding Russian 

13 and Chinese malign influence operations and campaigns 

14 carried out with respect to Balkan countries that seek— 

15 (1) to undermine democratic institutions; 

16 (2) to promote political instability; and 

17 (3) to harm the interests of the United States 

18 and North Atlantic Treaty Organization member 

19 and partner states in the Western Balkans. 

20 (b) ELEMENTS.—Each report submitted pursuant to 

21 subsection (a) shall include— 

22 (1) an assessment of the objectives of the Rus23 sian Federation and the People’s Republic of China 

24 regarding malign influence operations and camVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:53 Aug 21, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9123.IH H9123

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1 paigns carried out with respect to Western Balkans 

2 countries— 

3 (A) to undermine democratic institutions, 

4 including the planning and execution of demo5 cratic elections; 

6 (B) to promote political instability; and 

7 (C) to manipulate the information environ8 ment; 

9 (2) the activities and roles of the Department 

10 of State and other relevant Federal agencies in 

11 countering Russian and Chinese malign influence 

12 operations and campaigns; 

13 (3) a comprehensive list identifying— 

14 (A) each network, entity and individual, to 

15 the extent such information is available, of Rus16 sia, China, or any other country with which 

17 Russia or China may cooperate, that is sup18 porting such Russian or Chinese malign influ19 ence operations or campaigns, including the 

20 provision of financial or operational support to 

21 activities in a Western Balkans country that 

22 may limit freedom of speech or create barriers 

23 of access to democratic processes, including ex24 ercising the right to vote in a free and fair elec25 tion; and 


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1 (B) the role of each such entity in pro2 viding such support; 

3 (4) the identification of the tactics, techniques, 

4 and procedures used in Russian or Chinese malign 

5 influence operations and campaigns in Western Bal6 kans countries; 

7 (5) an assessment of the effect of previous Rus8 sian or Chinese malign influence operations and 

9 campaigns that targeted alliances and partnerships 

10 of the United States Armed Forces in the Western 

11 Balkans, including the effectiveness of such oper12 ations and campaigns in achieving the objectives of 

13 Russia and China, respectively; 

14 (6) the identification of each Western Balkans 

15 country with respect to which Russia or China has 

16 conducted or attempted to conduct a malign influ17 ence operation or campaign; 

18 (7) an assessment of the capacity and efforts of 

19 NATO and of each individual Western Balkans 

20 country to counter Russian or Chinese malign influ21 ence operations and campaigns carried out with re22 spect to Western Balkans countries; 

23 (8) the efforts by the United States to combat 

24 such malign influence operations in the Western 

25 Balkans, including through the Countering Russian 


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1 Influence Fund and the Countering People’s Repub2 lic of China Malign Influence Fund; 

3 (9) an assessment of the tactics, techniques, 

4 and procedures that the Secretary of State, in con5 sultation with the Director of National Intelligence 

6 and the Secretary of Defense, determines are likely 

7 to be used in future Russian or Chinese malign in8 fluence operations and campaigns carried out with 

9 respect to Western Balkans countries; and 

10 (10) recommended authorities or activities that 

11 the Department of State and other relevant Federal 

12 agencies could enact to increase the United States 

13 Government’s capacity to counter Russian and Chi14 nese malign influence operations and campaigns in 

15 Western Balkans countries. 

16 (c) FORM.—Each report required under subsection 

17 (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may in18 clude a classified annex. 

Æ 


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